The biggest hit album the year you were born

Michael Jackson's "Thriller" topped the chart in 1982 and 1983.
Cliff Schiappa/AP; Epic Records
Each year, one album taps into the hearts and ears of the public on its way to topping the Billboard year-end album chart.

Times have changed, though. In the 2010s, superstars like Adele and Taylor Swift have dominated the charts, while in the 1950s and early 1960s, musical soundtracks and Broadway cast recordings tended to top the list.

Before that, the top album chart was "based on a survey of representative retail outlets that determined a ranking" and was "not a tally of actual sales."

Business Insider compiled all the best-selling albums and their respective notable singles, dating back to 1956, so you can see, and hear, which album was the soundtrack to your birth year (so long as you're between the ages of 1 and 60).